Microsoft to release Office 15 beta in January

Microsoft is planning the first beta of its Office 15 software in January, WinRumors has learned. The software giant is currently preparing final milestone builds of Office 15 in preparation for a full beta in late January, according to sources familiar with the company’s plans. Microsoft Office 15, the codename for the next version of Microsoft’s popular productivity suite, is tentatively scheduled for a beta 1 milestone in late January. Microsoft will provide a Technology Preview of the software initially, expected at CES 2012 alongside the Windows 8 beta. Office 15 will be designed with touch at the heart of the applications. Microsoft has redesigned the general look and feel of its popular Outlook email client to make it usable by touch, pen and mouse.

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Microsoft Update Service Pack 1 for "Office for Mac 2011"

The Service pack 1 for Office for Mac 2011 is now available, go to any Office application on your Mac and Check for Updates you will download 246MB of SP1, this update “fixes critical issues and also helps to improve security,” the release notes say.

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Google Introduces Cloud Connect sync Microsoft Office files to Google Docs

Cloud Connect, released Thursday, allows users to save their files to "the cloud," which in this case is Google servers. Different users can then access and edit the file, increasing their collaboration and cutting down on confusion and wasted time over multiple copies of the document.
Cloud Connect installs a toolbar into your Microsoft Office programs where you can log in and sync your documents with Google Docs. Google saves every edited version of the document, no matter if those edits were made in Office or Google Docs. You can also make documents read-only as well via Google Docs and each document will get its own unique web address.

“For example, you can edit a Word document’s table of contents from Dublin while co-workers adjust formatting and make revisions in Denver,” says Google’s Apps product manager Shan Sinha. “Instead of bombarding each other with attachments and hassling to reconcile people’s edits, your whole team can focus on productive work together.”

Cloud Connect is free and works with Office 2003, 2007 and 2010 on Windows PCs. Cloud Connect, however, won't work with Mac versions of Office.

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